Inspiring Change Through Law for International Women’s Day
March 8th is International Women’s Day, formally observed by the United Nations in recognition of the fact that ‘securing peace and social progress and the full enjoyment of human rights...
From Torment to Tolerance and Acceptance to the Everyday: The Course of LGBT Equality in the UK
Colonisation is a dodgy business. Laws are mainstreamed across the Empire. So what did the Romans, keen to distance themselves from their pre-Christian roots, ever do for gay men? They...
Surrogacy, Same-sex Couples and the Privatisation of Regulation in Israel
On 30 January 2014, the Israeli Government published a draft bill on surrogacy. This proposed amendment to Israel’s 1996 surrogacy law, which was based on a deeply entrenched heteronormative vision...
The Women Empowerment and Gender Equality Bill: Can It Live Up to Its Name?
The Women Empowerment and Gender Equality Bill (WEGE) is currently before Parliament in South Africa. One of its main aims is to ‘give effect to the letter and spirit of...
No Compromise on the Right to Adequate Housing: UN Condemnation of UK Austerity Measures
Statements made by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, following her visit to the UK in September, clearly indicated that her ultimate report on the housing situation would...
The European Social Charter in Austerity Europe: Damning Conclusions on the Right of Access to Healthcare in Spain
Recent conclusions published by the European Committee on Social Rights (ECSR) present yet another damning indictment of the impact of austerity measures on human rights across Europe. In particular, the...
Scotland’s Gay Rights Journey
On 4 February 2014, MSPs passed the SNP government’s Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Bill into law, 105 votes to 18. Exemplifying the disunities of contemporary UK politics, the Scottish...
Scotland's Gay Rights Journey
On 4 February 2014, MSPs passed the SNP government’s Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Bill into law, 105 votes to 18. Exemplifying the disunities of contemporary UK politics, the Scottish...
Kong Yunming v The Director of Social Welfare: Constitutional protection of social welfare rights in Hong Kong
On 17 December 2013, the Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong unanimously allowed the appeal of Madam Kong in Kong Yunming v The Director of Social Welfare (Kong). Kong,...
The New Barbarians: Bulgarians and Romanians at the Gate!
Joseph Goebbels, Reich Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany, is reputed to have said: ‘If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to...
Navigating the Troubled Waters of Religious Accommodation
Recent reports concerning a situation in York University, Toronto, have reignited discussion on the complex subject of the right to religious accommodation. A male student, enrolled on an online course,...
Reviewing Koushal: Counting Down the Errors Apparent on the Face of the Record
The seven review petitions filed in the case of Koushal v Naz Foundation (“Koushal”) are an exercise in drawing up the rather lengthy list of errors apparent on the face...